Telstra Student Project Participant and Scholarship Recipient, Meg Evenden Lands a Role Within Telstra as a Cyber Analyst

Meg Evenden, an alum of the University of Melbourne has navigated an impressive early career trajectory, having completed a research project and an internship both at Telstra as well as receiving a Telstra scholarship to support her studies. These experiences nurtured the development of Meg’s skills, culminating in securing a role as a Cyber Analyst at the company that ignited her passion for cyber security—Telstra.

From the onset of her academic journey, Meg explored career pathways and sought real-world exposure. Her pursuit to find an internship led her to discover the Telstra Technology and Innovation Masters Scholarship—an opportunity aligned with her ambitions.

“I had a look at a few different summer vacation internship programs that I could do, I looked at a few different cyber security internship programs, and Telstra was my number one pick from day one.

At the same time, there was an email that came out about the Telstra Technology and Innovation Masters Scholarship. The selection criteria were that you had to be studying a STEM degree and be either female identifying or Indigenous, and as a female-identifying student, I thought this was something I could apply for.

Within a week of each other, I ended up doing both the internship and the scholarship interview and I got both. So that was where it all started,” Meg recounts.

Meg Evenden presentation

The scholarship and internship

The Telstra Technology and Innovation Masters Scholarship significantly alleviated the financial pressures of a part-time job, allowing Meg to completely immerse herself in her studies.

Placed in the cyber security team whilst on her internship, Meg contributed to security monitoring by processing relevant data. This experience not only facilitated opportunities for Meg to familiarise herself with the technical backend but also allowed her to develop code—a significant leap in her skill set.

“I also got to start developing code myself, which was fun! It was a big step up. I got to write parser code which took the raw data and transformed it into the format required, which was good to get hands-on experience and be able to say I'm doing something that's actually useful. I'm learning things that are applied in industry and not just the theory...and that was really cool.”

Meg Evenden at TCSApplication of the Master of Information Technology

Having undertaken a security monitoring subject during her Master of Information Technology course provided a foundation for Meg to transfer and apply relevant skills within her internship.

“Doing the whole project around previously learnt theory meant that going into industry, I had that experience, so having that broad range of subject areas was really what I enjoyed about being at Melbourne and being in engineering and information technology.

I think a lot of the things you learn in IT are not just, how to write in this programming language, how to format your code, it's more: here are the skills to breakdown a problem and solve it, and so a lot of what I found, both in my internship and now  is that those skills of being able to look at a problem from a high level and then figure out the technical details from that is what I learned, which is really useful,” Meg reflects.

The Research Project and Telstra’s Support

A pivotal aspect of Meg’s journey was her involvement in a Masters student research project supported by Telstra, focusing on machine learning models and detecting malicious domains in network traffic. The project not only contributed to credits towards her degree but also encouraged regular interactions with Telstra. This engagement enhanced the strong relationship between Meg and Telstra, cementing her place as a member of the Telstra community.


“It was really good having the Telstra sponsorship of the project because I got regular touch points with them. I’d tell them my plan and then from an academic standpoint, my supervisor would provide me with feedback.”

Meg’s Advice and Reflections

Now a Cyber Analyst at Telstra, Meg encourages current FEIT students to embrace all opportunities, emphasising the value of internships in shaping career expectations.

“I think going into both of my degrees, the overarching theme was that I really didn't know what I wanted to do, and I think that's okay, I think that's exactly what the Melbourne curriculum is for, so that you've got the time to experience different things. And I'd just say go and experience as many things as you can.”

Acknowledging the uncertainty that many students face in their first year of their master’s degree, Meg advises students to participate in internships to discover what a career in a specific industry looks like in the real world.

“Even the ones that aren't good experiences are just as useful because they will point you in the right direction. As long as you try out as many different things as possible. You'll find something that you enjoy and then that will kind of lead you to where you need to be.”

Ultimately, Meg Evenden’s journey exemplifies the synergy between academic pursuits and practical experiences, showcasing the transformative impact of scholarships, internships, and research projects in shaping a successful career in the engineering and information technology industry.